Here’s a question: What, exactly, is a PROTAGONIST?

Wing, that’s an easy one. “Protagonist” is just a word that means “main character”.

Okay, sure. I’m not going to split hairs with you here. “protagonist” means “main character”.

(Some argue otherwise, but it’s pretty telling, the only definitions for “main character” that are different from those given for “protagonist” come from people instructing on the difference; anyone simply defining terms—like a dictionary—uses them interchangeably.)